Hannah and Garrett are my dream team. I loved this story from the second that I started the show. So, obviously I wanted to read this book to see how similar the stories are (and if the adaptation did a good job since I don’t know any better). Well, I’m here to tell you that the TV show did a VERY good job at bringing this story to life, and the things that they did change were, in my honest opinion, changed for the better. 

I’ll start with the plot because as far as the TV show goes, very very little changed. Hannah and Garrett get in this fake dating/fake flirting scenario to attract Justin while Hannah helps tutor Garrett. Hannah and Garrett get closer to each other while all of this is happening and learn some pretty dark secrets about each other, too. Their chemistry is impeccable in the book, but I was pretty sad that we didn’t get as many music scenes as the show (this is how the show shines in my opinion).

I really loved the slow and fun pace of the book (though, sometimes it did feel a little too slow). But the slow pacing does a really great job at giving us the time to get to know all of the characters in a more intimate way (not through steamy scenes, but there are plenty of those anyway). 

Spoilers ahead. 

Alright, I wanted to give you guys a few of the differences that I spotted that I thought were great changes in the TV show. 

• Hannah and Garrett aren’t really fake dating as much as Garrett is fake pursuing Hannah. The TV show does a great job of emphasizing the fake dating and making it more fun to watch. 
• Justin is a football player in the book, which feels like a totally odd character for Hannah to have a crush on. Changing Justin to this music-loving guy makes much more sense. 
• Hannah kisses Dean in the books but actually kisses Logan in the show. This obviously makes a ton of sense since Logan ends up “liking” her. 
• The puck bunnies give themselves that name in the show instead of being named that by the hockey players in the book. I think one of the shining features of the show is that it makes the guys a lot more earnest, soft, and sympathetic. Garrett asks a lot about consent and comfort. Dean, while still a ladies man, has a lot of soft edges. The show seriously makes these men admirable while still highly desirable. 
• Garrett’s dad never proclaims to be better in the book. He’s a douche all the way to the end, where he basically blackmails Hannah into breaking up with Garrett (which is a huge change with the show, but honestly was so good because I hated that trope in the book of the forced breakup).

These are the biggest ones I can remember, but like I said, I loved all the changes.

Overall, I seriously enjoyed this book, but I would venture to say that I liked the show even more (because of the music and creative changes that brought it to life). So, if you want something steamy, romantic, and a little more grownup than YA but not all the way adult, Off Campus is the book (and TV) series for you. 

Source: Audiobook from Audible

(P.S. You can read tons of books—including ones written by me—by trying a free trial of Kindle Unlimited!)